12.2 Activity

First, read the text below. Then, in a few sentences, describe why the language used in the text is problematic. Finally, revise the following text to replace the ableist language or concepts.

Dr. De Palma, an ASL scholar and handicap rights advocate, has struggled with an extreme case of Ménière's disease for the past decade, and has suffered from autism and being wheelchair bound from the age of six. His Ménière's disease caused his deafness at the age of 34, but he sees it as a benefit: “Because of my autism, and because I couldn’t run around like the other kids, people thought of me as ‘dumb’ and ‘weird,’ so I was often excluded. I didn’t have a lot of friends. It wasn’t until I lost my hearing that I found real community. The deaf community welcomed me in like no other group had before” (“Creating Kinship Structures in Disabled Groups”).